‘Weak,' ‘whiny' and ‘invisible': Critics of DNC Chair Ken Martin savage his tenure
Four-and-a-half months after the Democratic National Committee chair pledged to focus on fighting Donald Trump, Ken Martin's short tenure leading the organization has been engulfed by bitter infighting. Even longtime party insiders are getting impatient.
Interviews with a dozen DNC members revealed deep frustration with Martin and concern about his ability to unify and lead a party trying to recover from massive electoral losses in 2024.
One DNC member — who, like others in this story, was granted anonymity to speak candidly — described him as looking 'weak and whiny,' and another said he has been 'invisible' and his 'early tenure has been disappointing.'
Rahm Emanuel, former President Barack Obama's first White House chief of staff, said the committee is floundering. 'We're in the most serious existential crisis with Donald Trump both at home and abroad — and with the biggest political opportunity in a decade,' Emanuel said.
'And the DNC has spent six months on a firing squad in the circle, and can't even fire a shot out. And Trump's world is a target-rich environment.'
Many DNC members and outside Democrats, including Martin's supporters, said they wished the party would just move on from recent internal turmoil and focus instead on mounting an effective fight against Trump.
Two influential labor union heads quit their posts at the DNC after disagreements over the party's direction. Gun control activist David Hogg was ousted from the DNC's vice chairman position after he pledged to fund primary challenges against 'ineffective' Democrats.Martin has infuriated some Democrats by purging a number of party officials from a powerful panel that has enormous sway over the presidential nominating contest. And Martincomplained in a private meeting that intraparty warfare had 'destroyed any chance I have to show the leadership that I need to.'
Martin and his supporters argue he's focused on the things that matter and will ultimately win elections. They said he has traveled to dozens of states and boosted funding to state parties at the same time that Democrats have overperformed in special elections this year. They maintain the overwhelming majority of DNC members are solidly behind Martin, and that his detractors are a vocal minority.
'I ran and won the race for DNC chair to get the DNC out of DC — because too many people in DC want to point fingers, and play the blame game,' said Martin in a statement to POLITICO. 'They want to win irrelevant arguments, with no strategy involved, but the one strategic thing that makes us relevant is winning elections. I was elected chair to help our party win again, and we are.'
But some Democrats worry the DNC is struggling to hold its own coalition together, let alone expand its appeal.
They expressed frustration over the DNC's break-up with American Federation of Teachers President Randi Weingarten and AFSCME President Lee Saunders — who between them represent millions of members — as the latest sign of a widening gap between party leadership and the labor movement, a once-core part of the Democratic coalition.
'The DNC is weaker than I have ever seen it. … They have shown zero ability to chart a post-24 vision for Democrats,' said a Democratic strategist with close ties to labor unions, who was granted anonymity to speak frankly. The longtime leaders of the teachers and state and local employee unions couldn't 'in good faith continue to rubber-stamp what was going on with the DNC,' the strategist said.
Both Weingarten and Saunders expressed concern about Democrats not enlarging their tent in their respective letter and statement about their departures. Weingarten told POLITICO, 'I have said my piece. I want the Democratic Party to work for working families. That's what FDR did, that's what Joe Biden did, and that's what we should expect from the party.'
Some Democratic lawmakers have gone public with their complaints that the DNC's infighting has distracted from the party's larger goals.
Rep. Mark Pocan (D-Wis.) grumbled on the social media platform X that he would 'love to have a day go by' without the DNC doing 'something embarrassing & off message.' Rep. Ro Khanna (D-Calif.) said on X he wanted 'a party with a big tent and inclusion, not subtraction and pushing people out.'
Other Democrats cited what they described as Martin's ham-handed approach to the DNC's influential rules and bylaws committee, which is charged with setting the 2028 presidential primary calendar. Martin purged members of the panel, including Weingarten and Saunders, who had supported Martin's top opponent in the February election for DNC chair.
Of the 15 Democrats he took off the panel, 13 of them hadn't voted for Martin, according to an internal record obtained by POLITICO. Martin only reappointed four individuals for the panel who didn't back him in the chair election, according to the documents.
Martin's supporters said he deserves to install his own team — as other chairs traditionally have done. And they argued he has actually diluted his own power to give the rest of the party a say by opening up some coveted committee slots to election by DNC members. He has also pledged that 15 at-large DNC positions will be elected by DNC caucuses and councils.
Martin's allies said his changes have empowered state and local leaders — and, at times, taken clout away from more Washington-oriented Democrats who are now upset over their loss of power. Pointing to Democrats' overperformance in special elections this year, they said his strategy is showing returns.
'Many people get comfortable with the status quo,' said James Skoufis, a member of the 'People's Cabinet' at the DNC. 'I would argue that the status quo is far riskier than transforming the DNC and, in the process, perhaps ruffling the feathers of some individuals who prefer the status quo.'
Jaime Harrison, a former DNC chair, said that the internal strife that Martin is encountering is similar to what past leaders of the party experienced following their elections.
'My perspective is some of this is the normal thing that happens,' he said. 'You have a contentious DNC race and sometimes feelings get a little raw. But then people really start to focus on what's at hand.'
Still, Harrison acknowledged, the fissures have at times overshadowed Martin's efforts.
'He's just putting in the work, and the sad part is that most people don't know because we've been focused lately on Democratic primaries and stuff that in the grand scheme of things doesn't really matter,' he said.
At the top of the list of recent party obsessions: Hogg and his vow to fund primary challenges to sitting Democrats. Martin's allies said Hogg, not the DNC chairman, is to blame for distracting the party. But even some of Martin's supporters have second-guessed his role in the drama, saying he should have forced Hogg out earlier, pointing to the fact that the young activist fundraised off of his fight with party leadership with digital ads that included the tagline, 'The old guard is pissed at me. Fight back,' according to screenshots shared with POLITICO.
Other members, meanwhile, felt Martin should have kept Hogg in the fold, arguing it was a 'missed opportunity' for the party 'to capitalize on an asset that could've been so helpful for the party,' a third DNC member said, citing Hogg's enormous social media megaphone:'Does anyone else at the DNC have a million followers on X?' the person added.
By his own admission, Martin, a little-known figure nationally who previously served as chair of the Minnesota Democratic-Farmer-Labor Party, has struggled to become more widely recognized. In the audio of the DNC meeting obtained by POLITICO, Martin said, 'No one knows who the hell I am, right? I'm trying to get my sea legs underneath of me and actually develop any amount of credibility so I can go out there and raise the money and do the job I need to to put ourselves in a position to win.'
Some Democrats said that Martin was in his early days as chair and deserves the benefit of the doubt.
'Mr. Martin is just starting out,' said Sen. Ron Wyden (D-Ore.), who added the two have a relationship. 'You give people a bit more time before you start making evaluations.'
But other Democratic lawmakers have yet to sit down with him.
'To tell you the truth, I don't know him. I haven't met him yet,' Sen. Mazie Hirono (D-Hawaii) said when asked how Martin has done in his first months as chair. 'I am sure he's doing everything he can, but we can all improve our communication of what is going on with this regime.'
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